Colombia suspends peace talks with ELN

la palma - After a bomb attack by the guerrilla organization ELN at a police station, the Colombian government stops the peace talks with the left-wing rebels indefinitely. ' I have decided to suspend the fifth round of negotiations until the ELN's actions are in line with their words', said President Juan Manuel Santos Monday after consultation with the chief negotiator of the government, Gustavo Bell.

The negotiations were halted temporarily in mid-January after the ELN had committed an attack on an oil pipeline before the cease-fire had ended. The resumption of the talks was planned for the coming days.

The attack on a police station in Barranquilla in the north of Colombia killed five police officers and 41 others were injured. The ELN has claimed the attack. Since the peace treaty with the larger rebel group FARC at the end of 2016, the ELN, with nearly 2,000 fighters, is the last active guerrilla organization in the South American country.